District sues McIngvale over $48,000 in unpaid taxes

McIngvale sued over unpaid taxesGallery Furniture owner says he's willing to fight business district in court over $48,000 bill

PURVA PATEL, Copyright 2009 Houston Chronicle

Published
5:30 am CDT, Friday, May 29, 2009

Gallery Furniture founder Jim McIngvale, shown last Friday, a day after a fire destroyed his North Freeway store warehouse, says he's gearing up for a court fight against the Greater Northside Management District. less

Gallery Furniture founder Jim McIngvale, shown last Friday, a day after a fire destroyed his North Freeway store warehouse, says he's gearing up for a court fight against the Greater Northside Management ... more

Photo: Julio Cortez, Chronicle

Photo: Julio Cortez, Chronicle

Image
1of/1

Caption

Close

Image 1 of 1

Gallery Furniture founder Jim McIngvale, shown last Friday, a day after a fire destroyed his North Freeway store warehouse, says he's gearing up for a court fight against the Greater Northside Management District. less

Gallery Furniture founder Jim McIngvale, shown last Friday, a day after a fire destroyed his North Freeway store warehouse, says he's gearing up for a court fight against the Greater Northside Management ... more

Photo: Julio Cortez, Chronicle

District sues McIngvale over $48,000 in unpaid taxes

1 / 1

Back to Gallery

Jim McIngvale says he pays his school taxes, federal taxes and every other tax he can name.

But the owner of Gallery Furniture says he refuses to pay about $48,000 in taxes and penalties he owes a local management district, on principle.

“To me, it’s taxation without representation,” he said. “If they were doing something that was benefitting the area, I would pay.”

The Greater Northside Management District is now suing McIngvale for $28,600 in taxes and an additional $19,200 in penalties and interest.

He’s willing to go to court to contest the taxes on his business property on the North Freeway, he said, because he hasn’t seen much improvement in the area.

For example, he said the district should be doing more to maintain rights of way. He said he pays $1,787 a week to have the lawn mowed adjacent to his property, further out to the frontage lanes between Tidwell and Parker and other rights of way surrounding his entire property, he said.

That’s money, he said, he shouldn’t have to spend.

Work ahead for area

Rebecca Reyna, executive director of the Greater Northside Management District, acknowledged the district had much work ahead.

The group, however, does much to improve the area, she said.

The district has off-duty officers patrol the area, picks up litter in commercial corridors and cleans up graffiti.

“Do I agree there is much more to do? Yes. Do I wish we could do it faster? Yes,” Reyna said. “We work in the constraints of our size and budget, yet I see positive work being done every day.”

When asked if she knew of McIngvale’s complaints, she said, “Our conversation was very brief.”

The Legislature formed the district in 2005 after 50 area commercial property owners signed a petition in favor of its creation, Reyna said.

It has more than 4,000 delinquent accounts, some for as low as $4, she noted.